Shattered Confidence
by Nayeri
Summary: When Sam leaps into an unexpected situation, it causes Ziggy to struggle with a reason that he's there. How can Sam do the task assigned to him with a shattered confidence? AU, Rated M for mature situations such as rape and violence. Readers have been warned.


(Author's note: Sorry everyone, but my muse has gone dead on everything but this one. Now, I've been watching QL for awhile now, and I've been inspired to write a fanfic. This takes place before the episode Raped. So without further ado, on we go.)

_Sam sat in the car, waiting for Suzanne to wake up. His mind was on Donna, and his heart was hurting. He had felt the failed attempt to retrieve him, and knew that his next leap would be into another troubled soul, instead of home. He also knew that he would forget his wife, and would until they managed to retrieve him. He sighed, and closed his eyes as he felt himself leaping, for the hundredth time._

When Sam opened his eyes, it was to find himself staring at another man's face, one he was currently lip locked with. Sam stiffened slightly, unprepared to leap into such a confusing situation. However, his mind cleared as he felt the guy getting fresh with him.

It is amazing how one can become centered in a moment of discomfort. Sam's hand pushed against the man, and when that didn't work, came around to slap the guy in the face. The man appeared startled, and asked "What's with you, Jean? You were enjoying it!"

Jean? Sam groaned mentally: he hated leaping into women. It was awkward at the best of times, and Sam never knew quite what to make of it. However, he said "I'm just not ready," and started to fumble behind him. He had, once the man had stopped kissing him, noticed he was in a car. If he could get out, and start walking, maybe Al would find him and tell him what the hell was going on.

The man, however, turned nasty. He snarled "I've had it, Jean! You will kiss me, but when it comes to going to the next base, you balk!" When Sam hit him again to try and get away, he grabbed his wrist, and twisted it sharply behind him. Sam bit his lip as he felt the unnatural motion cause his arm to throb with pain in at least two places. He also noticed that he had been turned around, and his face was being pressed into the passenger side window.

He heard the man growl "No one turns down David Ryson and gets away with it!" David apparently had something sinister in mind. For some reason, however, Sam couldn't fight back no matter how hard he tried. Then he felt pain beyond imagining, as if he was being ripped apart. It didn't last very long, but for Sam it seemed to last a life time.

Ten minutes later found Sam walking down the highway, following the directions of the few street signs around. Thankfully, he still had Jean's wallet, and her ID said that she lived in the town he was heading for. At age 23, Sam guessed that Jean was a recent college grad. He wondered what she had been doing with a sleaze like David. He decided it didn't matter, and that he should get to Jean's home before something else happened.

After a long and miserable walk, Sam finally opened the door to the apartment Jean was renting. He closed and locked the door behind him, and went to the bathroom to get ready for bed. He wondered where the heck Al was, as he had yet to show up the near hour he'd been in this time line. From everything he had seen so far, he gauged that he was in the late seventies, early eighties.

Sam was glad to note that Jean had a shower. He knew he shouldn't until the police got evidence, but he needed to get clean. It was doubtful he would tell anyone what happened anyway. He now understood why victims stayed silent: the complete and utter shame and humiliation they felt.

He nearly jumped a few feet in the air when he heard the Imaging Chamber door open just as he finished his shower. Grabbing the towel on the towel rack, he hastily covered himself as best he could. He didn't want Al to see him like this. As it was, it was taking all he could handle to make his injured arm work for him. He was sure something had been torn or broken there, the way it throbbed consistently.

"Hey, Sam," Al said distractedly. Sam blinked slightly, then shook his head. He really didn't have the curiosity at the moment to ask what was going on. Leaving the bathroom in a rush, he looked in Jean's closet. He only saw one pair of pajamas with pants, so he hastily put those on. He was ready for some sleep, but first he had to figure out why he was there.

He waited a few minutes, but Al was still messing with the handlink. Apparently something was going on back at home that was confusing Al. Sighing with impatience, he said waspishly "Well?" He wanted to do what he had to and get out of here, and he really didn't have the patience to wait for whatever problems to be fixed.

(End Author's note: Well, here's the first chapter. The next one should be through Al's PoV, and what is going on in the future. Hope I portrayed them correctly. As a side note, this is definitely AU. So please, R&R.)


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